Naruto Beginings
by lafemmemusketeer
Summary: Two small children are found abandoned within the Naruto world. Integrated into separate societies they grow up in the Ninja community only to be reunited for the Chunin Exam. How do they know each other? And are their memories finally coming back?
1. The Lost Girl

The crash of frozen air on her legs was the first sign that alerted the small child something was wrong. Mind fuzzy with the details because of her half conscious brain, she couldn't remember anything pertaining to anything besides the blinding pain shooting through her feeble body. Slowly her eyes fluttered open, only to have her vision be blurred and unfocused.

"Mm…." She reached up and rubbed the sleep from her tired eyes, "Mommy…..did you open my window?" A small voice cracked, her throat constricting until she could no longer speak.

Nothing. There was only silence. Finally after her eyes had become more focused she realized this was not a bedroom. No, she was laying in the middle of a grassy meadow. Surrounded by snow capped trees on all sides, the sound of chirping birds and small animals running around caught her ears.

"Mm….where am I?" The girl looked around lost. A sharp gust of wind whipped against her exposed skin, "Ahhh!" She gasped in surprise, "Brrr….."

A baggy powder blue blanket was draped over her top half, with holes on each side for her arms. Looking down she discovered a pair of ginormous jeans which hugged her slender waist ineffectively.

"W….why are my pants so big?" She mumbled softly as tears formed in her eyes, "I…I don't understand what's…..going on…." She sniffed as she curled herself in a little ball, wrapping her arms around her knees as she hid her face in her thighs.

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A young man about sixteen winters was walking down the forest path. His chocolate colored hair fell jaggedly in front of his right eye, then spiked over his left ear. Warm coal eyes looked over the snowed covered ground with an unguarded glee that intrigued his companion. Around the same age, the other man had ebony hair that spiked in all directions like a feral porcupine. A white bandage curved up both sides of his cheeks and met at his nose.

"It's beautiful out today." The brunette smiled jovially, his eye twinkling.

"Yes it is Izumo." The ebony haired man chuckled softly, grabbing his companion's hand. He weaved their fingers together which brought a blush to the brunette's cheeks.

"Kotetsu…." The brunette, whose name was apparently Izumo, looked over at the ebony haired man, his cheeks stained red.

Kotetsu smiled sheepishly, "What….can't I show my lover how much he means to me." He leaned over and kissed Izumo on the cheek.

"Mm….." Izumo blushed harder, "Y….Yes but……"

They suddenly where interrupted from their thoughts as a loud bawling sound erupted from the forest.

"What was that?" Kotetsu asked.

Izumo looked off into the forest with a trained eye for detail, "It almost sounds like….Mm…..No it can't be…."

"What?" Kotetsu looked at his young lover, "What does it sound like?"

"A….child."

"A WHAT?!" Kotetsu stared at him with unguarded horror, "Way out here?! Where anything could have hurt it?!"

"Y….Yes…" Izumo answered with a slightly shocked look on his face. He'd never seen his boyfriend snap into such a passionate mood just like that.

"We have to do something…Go back to Konoha…..No that's hours away...Then we have to go after it…..Damn, but what if it's a trap…..Ahhhhh, what do we do?!" Kotetsu grabbed his head, as he looked from the way back to the village to the inside of the forest.

Izumo sweat dropped, "Um….are we gonna stand here and listen to you rant or are we going to go save the child."

"Right!" Kotetsu dashed off into the trees and disappeared into the trees.

Izumo sweat dropped again, "He went the wrong direction." Several minutes passed with Izumo just looking blankly at the spot his partner had disappeared.

Kotetsu poked his head out from behind a tree, "Um Izumo….this is a dead-end." He sweat dropped.

Suddenly a large scream rang out into the forest, causing the two ninjas to turn around. They both looked toward each other and began running towards the source. Sitting there trying to scramble up a tree was a young girl about four winters with long brown hair. And a rather large spider was scampering up after her, which she was trying to evade by clawing at the trunk of an oak tree.

Kotetsu's eyes widened in horror, "That is a giant spider."

"Don't be such a baby." Izumo rolled his eyes.

"Do you see that thing?" He pointed, "It's bigger then my fist."

Izumo just shook his head and ignored his immature lover.

"Um…..sweetie?" Izumo walked forward and squashed the spider under his sandal (in fact it was rather large, and made a big squishing sound), "It's ok…..Please don't be afraid." He crouched down in front of her as he flashed comforting smile.

"Ya that's right….We're here to make sure you're ok." Kotetsu joined his lover, "Why don't you come here?" He smirked as he held out a hand.

The child turned toward them, and her big green eyes locked onto their gazes. Her eyes were a deep forest green, powdered with hints of light cobalt, and they were still brimming with unshed tears.

"Aww sweetie, please don't cry." Izumo frowned, looking at her sadly.

"It's ok, we're here to help….I promise." Kotetsu scooted a little closer.

The child shook her head and plastered herself against the trunk of the tree, her innocent eyes looking at the wearily.

Izumi looked over to his companion, "What should we do? We can't force her to come with us." He whispered.

"But we can't leave her out here alone either."

The girl's stomach suddenly gurgled and she slid off the tree holding her rebelling stomach. Kotetsu and Izumo laughed before Izumo reached into his bag pulling out a food bar. The girl wearily inched towards them, then unexpectedly snatched the bar out of Izumo's hand and started to munch on it.

"See….we're good guys." Kotetsu smiled at her reaching over. He placed a hand on her head and ruffled her hair playfully.

"Mm….Hey…My hair…" She pouted.

Izumo chuckled and moved closer to her, "What's your name sweetie?"

The little girl looked up at the taller man, "Mm….My name Inara."

"Awww…..that's a very cute name." Kotetsu smiled, looking at her intently now that she was closer.

The poor child was garbed in only a long blue shirt that fell down to her ankles, which on her looked more like an ugly dress. He discovered a pair of adult pants where she was sitting along with a pair of ladies' underwear.

"What in the world is going on?" He mumbled to himself.

Izumo followed his gaze and a look of surprise crossed his face.

"Um….sweetie….Where did these clothes come from?" Izumo asked the small child.

Inara sniffed, shaking her head.

"I dunno…I…I just…woke up here…" Inara looked to be on the brink of tears again.

Izumo quickly handed her another bar of food, "Don't worry……You're safe here with us." He smiled, "I'm Izumo and this is my friend Kotetsu. We're ninja from the Leaf Village."

Inara blinked and took the food. Unwrapping the package, she quickly stuffed half the bar into her mouth, "MUNCH!"

Kotetsu and Izumo stared at her wide eyed.

"She sure has an appetite." Izumo commented.

"It's better then her crying again." Kotetsu added.

"Ni…wa…." Inara said through a mouth full of food.

"What'd she say?" Kotetsu cocked an eyebrow.

Izumo giggled, "She said ninja…."

"Oh….well ya….We're Chunin from Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaf."

Inara swallowed and looked up at him.

"Ninja good?" She asked.

Kotetsu smiled, "Yes….we're good ninja."

"And we want to take you back to our village. The Hokage can help you there." Izumo smiled warmly, "He'll be able to explain what happened to you sweetie."

"Ho….ka…ge….." Inara blinked, wide eyed.

"The leader of our village, and the most powerful ninja in Konoha." Kotetsu added.

"Ohhhhhhh…..so He help Inara?" She beamed, finishing the food bar and throwing the wrapper on the ground.

Izumo chuckled, "Yes he'll help you sweetie…" He reached for her, "Mm….can I pick you up?"

Inara nodded, "Uh-huh." She said in a sweet/cute voice as she beamed.

Izumo smiled back as he wrapped his arms securely around her waist and heft her into his arms.

"Hehehe…" Inara giggled as she wrapped her arms around his neck and snuggled into him.

"You know….she's kinda cute when she's not crying." Kotetsu commented, watching the small child.

Izumo smiled, "Yes….extremely adorable."

Inara moaned faintly, her head resting peacefully on Izumo's shoulder. Her eyes were closed, and soft snores were escaping her lips.

"Aww….she fell asleep." Kotetsu chuckled, "I think she likes you Izumo."

Izumo blushed and cocked his head to peer down at her sleeping form sprawled over his shoulder.

"She was just sleepy….It was a hard day on her…I'm sure that's what it was…"

"Ya…..I'm sure that's what happened." Kotetsu teased, kissing his cheek, "You're too cute Izumo."

"Mm….Kotetsu….Not in front of the child." Izumo turned bright crimson.

"Appologizes." He chuckled softly as he wrapped an arm around his waist, "Come on….Let's get her to the Hokage before she wakes up."

"Well it's getting rather dark, should we make camp and finish walking into town in the morning? Traveling with kids is a little bit different" Izumo looked down at the exhausted little girl in his arms, "Besides….I think she's been through enough today."

"Right…..meeting everyone in the village is going to be a lot for her." Kotetsu agreed, "Hotel it is….I know the perfect one."

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Slowly the sun peeked through the open curtain, shining onto the two motionless figures in the queen size bed. A black hair spike poked out of the covers, followed swiftly by a head. Kotetsu yawned widely, snuggling closer to his lover.

"Mmmmm…" He smiled as Izumo's warm body pressed up closer against him. Wrapping an arm around Izumo's waist, he pulled gently. Their bare chests rubbed into each other earning a sharp gasp from the sleeping brunette.

"Kotetsu…." A blush crept across the younger man's face.

"Good morning Zumo." Kotetsu grinned mischievously. The old nickname further tinted Izumo's cheeks a vibrant pink.

"I told you not to call me that." The brunette scolded.

Kotetsu pouted playfully, his ebony eyes twinkling.

"Zumo-san….you're so grumpy in the morning."

Another blush.

"Am not…..you're just loppy in the morning."

"It's not my fault….waking up next to the most beautiful man in the world intoxicates me….You steal my breath away." Kotetsu leaned into the cherry red brunette, brushing their lips together in a feather light caress.

"Mm….." Izumo groaned, his plump lips parting as a sigh escaped his throat.

Taking advantage, Kotetsu instantly thrust his tongue between the parted lips, roughly grabbing the back of his lover's hair. The sweetness of Izumo's hot mouth assaulted his senses, making him light headed. He covered his lover's lips roughly, sliding against them as his tongue darted in and out of the slick heat, beating against Izumo's thick muscle.

A deep groan sounded in Kotetsu's mouth, originating from his young lover. Encouraged by the noise, the ebony haired male pushed his lover back into the bed, then crawled on top of him, pressing their bodies impossibly close.

"Mmmmm!" Izumo groaned loudly, arching off the bed. The sensation of their bare skin rubbing along each other had them panting harshly. Suddenly they broke apart gasping in ragged breathes, their chest heaving into the other as they stared into each other's lust filled eyes.

"Kotetsu…..you're so passionate this morning….." Izumo blushed like a school girl.

"What can I say….you bring the worst out in me." He smirked devilishly.

"MM!" Izumo stuck out his tongue, making a cute/disobedient face.

"Be careful…..I might steal that."

"Uh!" Izumo's eyes widened, "Yo….Yo…..You pervert!" He gasped, flushing with arousal.

"You love it." Kotetsu's voice dropped and octave as he lustfully gazed at his lover, licking his lips slowly. He leaned into Izumo for another kiss when suddenly he was stopped, "Mm…what is it Izumo?" He stared surprised at the hand blocking his way.

"I dunno…..Something's…..wrong…." He looked up at Kotetsu with his big chocolate eyes.

"Was it…something I did?" Kotetsu asked concerned.

"No of course no…..OH MY GOD!" Izumo leapt from the bed like a frightened cat, and unfortunately Kotetsu had still been on top of him, and was now sprawled stomach first on the floor.

"What the hell was that for Izumo?" He groaned in pain.

"The child you idiot! Where is she?" Izumo dashed around the room frantically, tossing the sheets off the bed and when he still didn't find her he finally flipped the entire mattress over.

"Child?" Kotetsu glared at his lover, "What chil……Oh right!" He jumped to his feet and quickly scanned the room, "We brought her back with us….right?" He shot Izumo a stunned, questioning look.

"Of course we did….I remember setting her in that bed before we all went to sleep." Izumo's voice cracked as he squeaked slightly. His voice always seemed to jump when he was distressed.

"Calm down Izumo…she has to be here somewhere….It's not like we lost her." Kotetsu grabbed Izumo's shoulders and squeezed them encouragingly, "We'll find her."

"I hope so…." Izumo sighed and looked around the destroyed room, feathers were scattered everywhere from the pillow he busted open, all the chairs had been knocked to the ground, the mattress was half out the window and there was now a large hole in the far wall.

"Well….we're definitely not going to get our deposit back on the room" Kotetsu sweat dropped, "So how are we going to explain this to the maid?"


	2. The Desert Girl

Out in the middle of the deep desert a young child around the age of four was laying collapsed, face in the sand. Stirring she felt a warm sensation on her body. Groaning she grudgingly opened her eyes. A huge wave of blinding light hit her causing her eyes to snap back shut and throw her hands up over her face.

"Mm…" she sat up and rubbed her eyes trying to get the sting of the light out. "Wha… what's going on?" She slid her hands down and attempted to open her eyes again. This time she was able to concentrate her vision and take in the sights around her. She gazed around her to see nothing but sand for miles and miles.

"Wha… where am I?" Her little voice was cracked and soft like a child's.

"This… this isn't my room." She was frantic with worry, nothing made sense. She should be safe in a bed….shouldn't she. But she wasn't, instead she was stranded in the desert all alone.

Not only did she not know where she was, she couldn't remember a thing about how she got here in the middle of a blazing desert. The sand beneath her glowed with heat, searing her skin without mercy. She tried to move but found herself weighed down for some reason. When she looked down she saw what looked like a giant blanket over her, but when she looked closer she noticed the blanket had two holes on the side to put her arms through.

"Mm! Wha…. What happened to my shirt?!" She stared at the shirt in horror. It was huge on her, so huge she could use it as a tent. "I…I don't like this…" She was on verge of tears. She was so confused and lost, she didn't know what to do. Not only did her shirt not fit, she was swimming in her pants as well.

"Wha…. What's going on… where… where am I? And whose pants are these?" She choked out before bursting into tears. She was in the middle of some strange land with no where to go and cloths that swallowed her up.

* * *

The air hung around like a fog, smothering the man has he treaded through the desert. It almost felt like someone's hand was around his throat, cutting off his breathing. Humid, almost to the point where the sun was cooking him alive.

"Damn sun." The man wiped his hand across his sweating forehead, flicking the perspiration onto the sand below. His face was half obscured by the dirtied white cloth that hung over the left side of his face. Two red stripes tattooed his right cheek, drawing attention to his beady eyes. His mouth was drawn into a tight frown, which only made his face even more menacing.

Dredging through the wretched desert was worse then stepping on thousands of tiny daggers. Pulling his hood tighter around his head he peered around the small alcove the sand dunes had created. Nothing surrounded him on all sides, making the walls of sand feel like they were moving closer together, boxing him in a cocoon of gritty sand. The masked man stifled back a moan of displeasure and walked forward, trying not to look around himself too carefully.

"Tech…." He thrust his hands into his pockets and fingered the smooth surface of his kunai, taking pleasure in it's reassurance. He couldn't be certain, but the man had the distinct feeling he was not alone in the dune. Some sort of presence tingled his experienced senses, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Without making a sound he lifted the kunai from his pocket and clasp in hidden in his hand as he stood on the peak of a small mountain of sand. A small whine was the first thing to assault his senses, making his kunai snap out of his hand and sink into the ground not five feet from him.

"Getting jump…Uh!" A flicker of movement caught his eye, barely an inch from the kunai, beneath the shelter of some sort of rag something move. Something…..tiny. He hopped over the side and walked over to the rag, ripping it off in a fluid motion.

"Don't move!" Another kunai had found it's way into his hand, and now pressed against the throat of a small child, "Mmmm…" The girl couldn't be older then five, and yet here she was out in the desert. Alone. Or was she. Could it be possibly this girl child was the bait to some methodical trap laid for him. Foolish ploy that it was considering his detest for the younger generations.

"Mm…." The little girl trembled beneath the blade, "P….P…Please…." her small lips quivered, her saucer blue eyes staring up at his face, baring into his soul for mercy.

"What are you doing out here?!" He barked, tightening his grip on the blade, "Answer me!"

"I….I….I…." She shook her head, "P….Please…..Dont hurt me!" Her eyes snapped shut.

"Answer my question little girl….What the hell are you doing out here alone!"

"I….i wwoke uup herrre…." She stuttered, wrapping her arms around her small body, "Please…..i…I didn't do…anything….I…I want to go home…." She started to cry miserably, drowning herself in her own tears.

"What's your name? What village are you from?"

"I….I….Izumi….I….i…don't know….where I'm from…" She continued to quiver under his interigation.

"Mm…." The man scanned over the area thoroughly before he pulled the kunai away and stashed it in his waist pouch, "Who ever you are…Izumi was it…." He glared down at her with contempt, "You won't last much longer out here…I suggest you head back to wherever you came from." He turned away from her and started to walk off.

"Mm…A…Aren't you….going to help me?" Her small voice washed over him, and for an instant….He felt a small twinge of sympathy for the girl's problem.

"No….I'm not going to help you….If you want out of this damn dune, your going to have to do it yourself." And with that he flung his cape behind him and started to climb the wall of sand until he made it to the top.

The girl, weeping and trembling, watched as the only person that could help her walk away without a second look.

* * *

Nothing short of a miracle allowed Izumi to rough the twenty foot sand wall, and manage to climb over it. Still shaken from the mummied man that had tried to kill her, she was ever vigilant to escape from her hellish nightmare and return home to her safe and warm bed, wherever that happened to be. After the strenuous climb that allotted two hours of her time, she was standing on top of the dune looking out of the forest of sand, dunes and rocks.

"Where….am I?" Her voice cracked from the constant lack of hydration. Confused, thirsty and aching from everywhere on her body, Izumi started to follow footprints she spotted in the sand. She knew who they belonged to. The scary man who had held a knife to her throat, but it was either go that way, or try and go back. Either way was a long shot, and her child-like brain rationalized that his way might lead to a city. So at the risk of running into the mummy again, she headed into his direction. Luckily the wind was too soft to have blown away his prints, and she had an easy enough time following them.

After about four hours of incessant walking, Izumi collapsed onto the sand face planting herself. Her muscles twitched with over exertion, and her throat felt like gravel. Barely able to keep her eyes open she called out for help, though little more then a squeak escaped her mouth.

When she could no longer speak, Izumi tried crawling on the sand, which turned into more like sliding because her knees couldn't bend anymore. But exhausted as she was, finally the frail child completely succumbed to the darkness threatening her and collapsed into oblivion.

* * *

Finally, after traveling for five days without rest the man reached his home village. The high cliffs of Suna beckoned him to hurry, his home was awaiting him, along with his much deserved rest and relaxation.

"Baki-sensei!" A slightly high pitched voice called out to him, "You've returned at last." The man turned toward the voice and a deep frown formed on his face.

"Yashamaru…what the devil are you doing outside the gates?" He growled.

The younger, and much kinder, looking man merely smiled sweetly, "I've come to fetch herbs for Gaara's treatment."

"Gaara…" The name spat from his mouth like a curse, "Still fostering that demon are you?" Baki pushed his hood off and started to brush the sand from his clothes, "I figured the little beast would have killed you by now."

"Mm…." Yashamaru frowned for the first time, "I wish you would not refer to my nephew that way…"

"Tech….it matters little to me what you _**wish**_…." Baki pushed past the smaller man, knocking him back an inch, "I've got to report to the Kazekage…..have fun with your little demon." And with his harsh last words, Baki disappeared into the gate, vanishing.

"Such a disagreeable man…" Yashamaru shook his head as he turned back toward the desert, "Now….if I remember correctly…..It grew somewhere near the Cliffs of Bagnork…" He tapped his chin, "Or was it….by the Southern Oasis…." He shrugged his shoulders, "I'll just have to check both I suppose." He smiled and started to walk south, intending to check the Oasis first.


End file.
